Educational Media Reviews Online

This video is a reflective documentary about the inspiration and vision of five accomplished women musicians/guitarists trying to make it in today's male-dominated music industry. The five women, and their types of music, are: Terri Winston, "alternative"; Karen Almquist, "slide blues"; Jackeline Rago, "Latin jazz/traditional"; Lynn Vidal, "Celtic/blues"; and Carrie Baum, "rock." These women describe in short vignettes their influences and their struggles to play music and to make money from their talents in a music industry where women have yet to make their mark.

It is difficult to obtain a perspective about this situation, given the short amount of time devoted to each woman in this presentation, but the topic is of interest to anyone involved in or pursuing a career in today's music scene. Each woman's experiences and influences, as well as each of their unique blends of music, would be of interest in K-12 and college classes dealing with women's issues, sociology, or even as a topic generator in a music performance class at the college level. A unique perspective is presented by Lynn Vidal from the African American woman's viewpoint, although she expressed a lot of anger and frustration that may be perceived as negative. Jackeline Rago's use and skill with the quattro, a smaller version of the guitar used in Latin music, was of interest as well. I would recommend this video for the age groups and situations mentioned above.